


Simple Gifts

by M_Mint



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Batman and the Outsiders (Comics), Batman and the Signal (Comics), DCU (Comics), Detective Comics (Comics), Robin War (Comics), We Are Robin (Comics)
Genre: Bat Family, Batfamily Feels, Birthday Presents, Bruce shocked because his kids do in fact care for him, Duke has been legally adopted by Bruce, Gen, alfred is a good mom, everyone is awkward because they love one another, it's hard shopping for rich people, surprise presents are infinitely less fun when you're in a family of detectives, the real surprise is that people are still able to come up with original gifts to give to Bruce, they have to actively NOT detect in order to be surprised, where my Duke Thomas fics at, will no one write about my boy?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:41:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26128957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/M_Mint/pseuds/M_Mint
Summary: Bruce Wayne, legally father of six, spiritually father of twelve, continues to be surprised by the fact that his wards reciprocate some amount of his love for them. One-Shot.
Relationships: Duke Thomas & Bruce Wayne
Comments: 5
Kudos: 124





	Simple Gifts

**Author's Note:**

> DC comics haven't given me nearly enough Duke Thomas content, so I guess I have to give myself the Duke Thomas content I deserve, and you, the reader, by extension.  
> Enjoy. Or don't enjoy. Don't let me tell you how to live your life.

The first knock was quiet enough that any normal person would have mistaken it for background noise. Of course, Bruce Wayne was far from normal, contrary to popular belief, so when the second knock came a couple seconds later, Bruce had already stopped his work and was pondering who it could be, running through the list in his head.

It could not have been Alfred who knocked, the man always gave two sharp raps with the back of his hand before letting himself in, more of a formality, at this point. Dick had two settings: knocking rapidly while whining ‘ _Bruuuuuuuce_ ’ when he had something on his mind, or flinging the door open dramatically, either way forcing Bruce to stop whatever it is he was trying to do because Dick _needed_ him for something or was here to give him a hug for no apparent reason. The window was Jason’s preferred entryway because he was Jason and wanted to set himself apart from virtually anyone else (however, he obviously did not know that this was also Selina’s entry of choice).

Cass always knocked very quietly, but she knocked twice in a row, so whoever was at the door today was not entirely consistent with her M.O. A couple knocks followed by a soft and tentative, “Bruce?” was the indicator that Tim was behind the door, and Bruce always had to respond immediately, for the boy was easily discouraged, and often left Bruce alone if he didn’t have the man’s confirmation within seconds of him asking. Damian always called, “Father?” _before_ he knocked, so Bruce had no trouble wondering who was behind the door.

Logically speaking, that only left one family member unaccounted for, given that non-family members were usually not coming up to Bruce’s personal office save for Stephanie and Barbara. Stephanie knocked thrice, and the duration of the knocks and their distance from each other was always an indicator of her mood. And Barbara didn’t knock, but usually opened the door a crack and poked her head in.

“Come in,” he called now, and, unsurprisingly, Duke Thomas entered the room, his gaze averted towards the ground. Behind him stood Alfred with a reassuring hand placed on the boy’s shoulder. In the boy’s hands was clutched a small gift bag, his knuckles pale as though he was afraid it was going to fall.

There was a moment of silence which was broken by Duke starting to say, “H-hello Mr. Wayne…” softly, his voice faltering before the boy could manage any other words. Another beat of silence passed, and when it was clear that Duke was at a loss for words, Alfred took over.

“Master Bruce, Master Duke here has something he wanted to give to you, isn’t that right?” He shook Duke’s shoulder a little in an attempt to bring the boy back to reality.

“Y-yes, um, I…” he began, intermittently glancing up at Bruce and then back down to the floor. “Well, uh, I…” He cleared his throat, and Bruce saw him draw his shoulders back in an attempt to regain his confidence. “I, uh, I have someth—a-a gift. For you. Mr. Wayne.” He shuffled over to where Bruce sat at his desk and held out the bag at arm’s length. “Happy birthday.” His attention was immediately back to the floor.

Almost automatically, Bruce reached for the bag, although he was stunned at this turn of events. It had hardly been half a year that he had known Duke at all, and only a couple weeks since he had legally adopted the boy. The fact that Duke would inquire about _and_ remember his birthday was astonishing to Bruce.

There was an awkward moment when Bruce had the bag in his hands, but Duke, apparently not registering this fact, was still clutching it in his death grip. Only after Bruce gave a light tug did Duke’s eyes widen, and his hands flew from the bag’s handles like they were burning hot.

With a sweeping motion, Bruce cleared away the reports on his desk and set down the bag. It was only a couple inches tall, but instead of playing the usual guessing game he would with, say, Tim, Bruce instead elected to allow himself to be surprised by whatever lay within the confines of the blue tissue paper. In front of him, Duke held his breath as Bruce removed the carefully wrapped item. Between two fingers, he picked up what appeared to be a small USB flashdrive. Its base was made of a dark-stained wood, and there was a small keychain that hung off the edge

Bruce found himself utterly speechless, his mouth open slightly. Did—did Duke—

“I made it,” Duke hurriedly stammered in Bruce’s silence, rubbing his neck nervously. “In my woodshop class. At school. That’s why it looks…you know…not that—”

“It’s beautiful, Duke,” Bruce replied immediately, not allowing the boy to speak any further and try to somehow _defend_ the gift he had given to Bruce. It really was beautiful, mostly because Duke had made it. He had made it _for Bruce_. “I…I love it.”

Duke’s head shot up, and he grabbed the edge of the table excitedly. “Y-you do? _Really?_ ” Bruce met the boy’s gaze and nodded, a smile forming as he saw Duke’s face brighten.

“Yes. It’s really amazing,” he added, turning the flash drive over in his hands. “And you said you made this yourself?”

“Yeah,” the boy grinned. “Dick, uh, he said you like handmade gifts, which makes sense, like, because you’re rich and stuff.” Bruce also noticed that Duke had barely held back a gasp when Bruce pulled out his key ring from his pocket and took the time to slip on Duke’s creation.

“I’m certain Master Bruce would love to hear all about how you made that, Master Duke,” Alfred added tactfully. “I’ll be back with some tea, if you’ll allow me a few minutes.” He made eye contact with Bruce, raising an eyebrow and tilting his head deliberately.

Catching on to his suggestion, Bruce stood up from his chair. “Of course, Alfred, that sounds great.” He made for his armchair, gesturing for Duke to sit alongside him. The boy nodded, his entire demeanor relaxing as he sat down opposite Bruce and began to recount the man with a detailed explanation of his woodworking process. The progress reports lay to the side of his desk, forgotten for the time being.


End file.
